14 FOOTBALL BLOGGERS THAT YOU REALLY NEED TO READ

Now that the new football season has kicked off, we thought it would be a good opportunity to list the 14 football bloggers that you really need to read in 2015. From retro shirts to popular podcasters, we’ve got everything you need to keep your finger on the pulse.

Fancy yourself as a bit of a Fergie or think you have the mind of Mourinho? Fantasy Football First prides itself on bringing you insider tips on who’s hot and who’s, frankly, not. Can’t decide whether or not a striker from a newly promoted team is a good idea? Don’t sweat – the experts have already written about the topic. If you want to beat all your friends and stay one step ahead of the rest with your fantasy football team, you need to cast your monocle over this astute blog.

Focusing on the fortunes of League One side Bradford City, this independent site has perfected how to both inform and educate. There are newsy bits but dig a little deeper and the opinion section of T.W.O.A.P. is awash with heartfelt articles; taking your kids to their first game and concerns over foreign ownership both feature. Creator Jason McKeown wanted to write his blog in a style akin to the Guardian – we think he’s gone one better.

The self-proclaimed “female voice of football”, Futbolita lifts the lid on football and fan cultures across Europe and South America. Led by Ash Hashim, a sports journalist renowned for her interviews with some of the biggest Latino stars in the game, this blog is decidedly different, mainly because all of the content is driven completely by women.

Named after the song fans used to sing to honour the former Dutch international, A Bergkamp Wonderland is where like-minded Gooners come together to chew the fat. Interesting features include a popular podcast, seasonal prediction leagues and a page dedicated to finding a listener in each of the countries recognised by FIFA. Surprisingly, there are already four attributed to Kuwait!

Telling the story of football from a grassroots fan’s perspective, The Ball is Round is an excellent read for anyone who likes to look at the game from a seldom discussed vantage point. Edited by a trio of talented football authors in their own right, there’s no surprise the blog has won a number of friends in the game. Check out the ‘My First Game’ series for a healthy dose of whimsy and nostalgia.

Made by the fans of Liverpool, for the fans of Liverpool, AnfieldHQ is famed for its passionate articles, interactive polls and podcasts full of opinion. With over 55,000 followers on Twitter, the award-winning blog also know how to do social, too. One particular feature, Scout Report, which examines the strengths and weaknesses of rumoured transfer targets, is a real insight for anyone with an interest in the game.

The personal blog of Tom Williams, a London-based sport correspondent for the international news agency Agence France-Presse. As it’s his job to watch Premier League, Champions League and England games, he’s as close to a football expert as they come. His knowledge of the game is evident by a section on his site called ‘Tactics’, where he goes into the kind of detail about the minutiae of the game that would even make Arsene Wenger scratch his head.

Probably the blog to read if you’re a devoted Evertonian. Offering fans of the Toffees a forum to debate the club’s plight, the blog is one hundred percent autonomous from the football club and is easily one of the best-looking blogs in English football. G.O.T. is also very strong on social, with 169,000 Facebookers and almost 50,000 Twits. They even have their own app! Very, very clever.

Being a Grimsby Town fan is not an easy gig. Out of the pain of the club’s relegation from the Football League in 2010 (where the title of the blog comes from) T.G.T.G.D. was born. Written entirely by one person, with a hack’s background, this blog perfectly fuses opinion, thought-provoking interviews and genuinely intuitive statistical analysis. Although The Mariners are a non-league team – at the minute – this is far from being a non-league blog.

Devised by budding writers wanting a platform to share their work, Back Page Football has everything you’d possibly need to keep you in the loop; all under one… URL. Opinions and reports about world football are posted every single day – no stone (or ball) is left unturned. Also, its classic design makes for easy navigation, so you’ll spend less time looking for content and more time reading about goals and Galacticos.

If you love all football nostalgia, you need to check out this blog! Ever found yourself desperately searching for that Panini sticker to complete your Mexico ’86 album? Well, you’ll be amongst friends on The Football Attic! If you have a soft spot for retro shirts, flicking through their countdown of the ‘50 Greatest Football Shirts Ever’ will be a lot of fun. They’ve already counted down the top 40: go and see who’s made the top ten…

The go-to site for Chelsea fans since the year 2000. With match reports and news stories dating back well over a decade, it’s got a little bit of everything for Blues supporters. Don’t know your Diego Costas from your Gianluca Viallis? Hey, don’t worry about it. CFCnet has tonnes of profiles on current and former players. Most impressively, though, there’s a vibrant forum with over 23,000 active members all wanting to talk Chelsea, 24/7.

If you’re a Gooner and want to keep up to date with everything happening at the Emirates Stadium, you should make Le Grove a part of your regular online routine. Describing their blog as “a shelter for bloggers and a haven for Arsenal fans”, they’ve certainly been hitting the right part of the net for a long time now, having had over a million comments approved and published since coming to prominence in 2008. You can follow Le Grove on Twitter @LeGrove.

It does exactly what it says in the title. Put simply: Football Every Day provides you with your fix of football, every day. Now at the start of its third full season, the website is gaining a reputation as a creative hub for aspiring footy journos. It covers everything from the Championship and above in England to regular updates about MLS side San Jose Earthquakes. Back of the net!

Jack Johnson is a proud northerner living in the historic city of Oxford. A natural traveller, his first solo trip was to London as a 13 year-old. When he’s not travelling Jack can usually be found in a field somewhere walking his dogs. Jack is the Content Marketing Specialist for Holiday Lettings. Follow him on Twitter @jackjohnson1988